Fraud Protection & Security

At First Fed, we prioritize your security by educating you about the latest scams and fraud tactics that scammers use, empowering you to protect your finances and personal information.

{beginAccordion}

Scammer Tactics

• Scammers pretend to be someone you trust. They can pretend to be a vendor you’re familiar with or a customer who is interested in your business.
• Scammers create a sense of urgency hoping that you will not have time to think through the situation fully and asks questions.
• Scammers use intimidation or fear. They may try to tell you something bad is going to happen if you don’t do what is asked. This creates a sense of urgency to get the payment sent to avoid something bad happening.
• Scammers use untraceable payment methods. Wire Transfers and gift cards are nearly impossible to reverse or trace so they are the favorite payment method of scammers.

Fake Invoice Scams

Scammers can create fake invoices that may look legitimate. They can create invoices for things that your business may find critical, like keeping your website running or a supply that is critical to your business. This creates urgency to get the invoice paid, but if you pay, your money may be gone.

What to do:

• Check all invoices closely. Never pay the bill unless you are certain it is for something you actually ordered, a service that you actually received, etc.
• Make sure you have a procedure in place for reviewing and approving invoices. Limit the number of people who are authorized to pay invoices.
• Pay attention to how the invoice is being paid. If a wire transfer, reloadable card, or gift card is requested it can be a scam!
• If existing vendor payment information changes, call the vendor to verify (new address to send payment to, new vendor account number for ACH payments, etc.) the information before processing the payment.

Social Engineering Scams

Phone numbers can be spoofed so don’t count on the caller ID to confirm who you are speaking to. Imposters can call claiming to be a vendor that you do business with and can even change the phone number to make it appear legitimate. When in doubt, hang up and call the vendor back using the number you have for the vendor or check their valid website to find contact information.

Email addresses and websites that look legitimate are easy for scammers to fake. Stop and think before you click! Don’t open attachments or download files from unexpected emails; they may have viruses that can harm your computer and put your company’s info at risk!

Secure your files, passwords, and financial information so they cannot be compromised.

Check Fraud

Check fraud refers to any type of fraud that relies on paper checks to steal money from individuals or businesses. Checks can be altered, forged, or counterfeited.

It is important to:

• Check your account regularly
• Reconcile your account(s)
• Report any suspicious items to the bank immediately

{endAccordion}

Protecting your personal security is a top priority of First Federal Bank. We want to provide you with the tools and products to be sure your accounts stay secure. Stay out of harm's way by doing your part to secure your sensitive information. This short article from ICBA has some great tips to help you protect yourself.

{beginAccordion}

Check Your Credit

Stay on top of your credit the easy way! Online Banking features a free credit monitoring system that lets you check your credit on demand, see tips for improving your score, and sign up to get alerts when your credit score changes.

Credit Card Management

Through our partnership with Elan, we've got you covered! Downloading the Elan credit card app allows you a convenient and easy way to manage and monitor your credit card. Learn more and download the app today!

Fraud Defender

Have you been the victim of identity theft or a breach? Do you think there might be fraud on your credit report or on an account? First Federal customers receive free access to Fraud Defender. Click here to find out more about Fraud Defender.

SecurLOCK™Equip

SecurLOCK Equip is a mobile app that allows you to control your debit cards. It is a simple and secure way to manage and monitor your payment transaction activity. SecurLOCK Equip can help keep your payment cards safe and provide instant notifications whenever your card is used. Click here to learn more!

Tax Identity Theft

First Federal Savings Bank urges all customers to take extra precaution when filing their return to prevent their exposure to tax fraud. Fraudsters are using very clever tactics to get a hold of your personal information and submit false tax claims. Consumers must be suspicious of any communication from the IRS through email, text or social media that requests personal information, and should keep a watchful eye out for missing W-2s and mail containing sensitive financial information. Learn more about Tax Identity Fraud.

{endAccordion}

FBI page on common financial crimes

IC3 page from the FBI on internet crimes

IRS page on tax scams

FTC on consumer scams

General news on security topics